Editor’s note: This article discusses the plot summary of the Season 2 finale of “House of the Dragon.”
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The Season 2 finale of House of the Dragon, which aired on Sunday night, teased a massive battle scene multiple times — you know, the typical Game of Thrones-esque one, complete with dragon fire and a pithy line about why all this bloodshed is necessary, as the king and queen try to seize what they believe is rightfully theirs.
Well, we’ll have to wait a bit longer to see that.
According to showrunner Ryan Condal, the “Game of Thrones” prequel series has opted to act as a prologue to the big action in Season 3.
“This season has been about sporadically fighting the wars of the early Middle Ages, but season three will clearly be about all-out war,” Condal said in the post-episode special.
This season, a big part of the build-up to the coming battle has been Damon’s (Matt Smith) storyline, culminating in him ultimately choosing a side and submitting to Rhaenyra (Emma Darcy).
During his time at Harrenhal to raise the Riverlands army, Damon was plagued by visions of his past that led him to consider his future. His decision to join Team Black was based on a revelatory vision that Alyss Rivers (Gale Rankin) declared he was finally ready to see. In the vision, viewers saw familiar scenes from Game of Thrones: the Night King and White Walkers, the Three-Eyed Raven, dead dragons, Damon’s own death, and the eerie image of a future Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) and her three baby dragons rising from the ashes.
Damon basically watched all eight seasons of “GOT” in 60 seconds.
He also sees Rhaenyra take the Iron Throne, as his brother King Viserys (Paddy Considine) wanted, and is determined to pledge his loyalty to her. It’s then that he realizes he’s only a small part of a larger story in Westeros — a story he can’t control, but one that Rhaenyra is destined to lead.
When they finally meet again at Harrenhall, he tells her about his visions, uttering an all-too-familiar “Game of Thrones” warning: “Winter is coming.”
Alicent (Olivia Cooke) and Rhaenyra met in secret again. Alicent was remorseful. She told Rhaenyra that she would let her occupy King’s Landing while Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) flew off to the battle at Harrenhal to save her and her daughter. To do so, she agreed to sacrifice her other child, King Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney). Oh dear. In the end, it turned out that Rhaenyra had no chance to kill King Aegon, as he escaped from King’s Landing with the help of Laerys Strong (Matthew Needham). Aemond, seeing Rhaenyra’s dragon troops, was very upset that he no longer had the upper hand, and in his desperation, tried to get Helayna (Fia Saban) to ride his dragon to fight. She refused, telling him that she had a vision in which he was “devoured” by the Eye of God and would never be seen again. After hearing this, he seemed even more panicked than he had been last week. Tyland Lannister (Jefferson Hall) had to sing songs, wrestle in the mud, and possibly agree to father lots of children with different women in order to get the Triumvirate onto Team Green. It worked, adding some lightness to the episode. Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) appeared again, but only briefly. He was locked in a cell somewhere, and didn’t seem to be doing too well. The new dragon riders Wolf (Tom Bennett), Hugh (Kieran Bew), and Adam (Clinton Liberty) seemed to be adjusting to the new normal. Wolf had some respect and tact issues, which infuriated Jacaeris (Harry Collett), but Hugh and Adam looked up to the task.
Cheers to another season of intense and complicated family dynamics.
